Asbestos removal for co op building, exterior asbestos
Was trying to read through some older posts regarding recommendation for asbestos removal, and only saw favorable reviews for Leinster Contracting, and I saw a negative mention for GAC environmental with leaving work unfinished in Manhattan at some asbestos disaster with a fly by night company..my husband is on the board of our coop building in queens, it’s a prewar building about 1928\. We needed to have the bricks pointed however, there seems to be some issue with asbestos being somewhere in the exterior facade and it needs to be dealt with before the pointing can begin, there is also some of it on the roof, I think. —-Problem is not sure who the managing office has got quotes from, and they are having big meeting on it tommorow, and my husband would like to have a checklist to ask the potential contractor who might do this work what procedure he is following. What are the questions he should ask and are there any other good contractors beside Leinster? Was thinking, that he should ask if workers have a portable shower, what type of masks do they wear, do they wet everything down, how do they clean up, how do they protect what will fall below as they work on outside of building, —we are planning to be completely out of the area when they do this work, since I’ve read the asbestos stay airborn for hours, maybe 8-10, we will stay away while the work is being done, and probably at least a day or two after, just to be safe. I’m wondering though what might end up on the other side of our windows, and will they wash down the building? Is this something that should be asked?….I’m surprised with all the “green” conscious people living in park slope and other nice area in Brooklyn Co-ops, that there isn’t some sort of reliable resource and faq for this sort of thing…anyway, would much appreciate some advice, so that my husband can go armed wih good requirements, so that those tenants that will be here, it is a 6 story 50 apt building, will be safe. THere is also some lead on fire escapes, and I found a product by eco-bond that appears to adhere to the lead and then it can either be removed without endangering or painted over and will pass the nyc regulations–so, I think this is a much better solution that having lead removal… Anyway, we’re very worried about this stuff going on and we have a young child, too. Thank you to the experts out there.
queensenvirosafe
in Co-Op Related 13 years and 5 months ago
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queensenvirosafe | 13 years and 4 months ago
thank you for above responses, very helpful. Compiling final list to get estimates, we had contractor come out who is not an asbestos expert,–and would like to interview a few of the better ones and go with a specialist who will work with the other contractor who will erect the scaffolding on the building. Can anyone give me the top 3 I should contact from this list? I’ve read through as much as I could find on this site, but hit a dead end anywhere else on the net looking for opinions..and don’t belong to that Angie’s list, and don’t know if it’s reliable anyway…. SO, I’m thinking, Leinster, Abatek and GAC? Does this seem like the 3 to interview and choose from??? Thanks so much for some real feedback from those that have used them. -Leinster Contracting–only saw them mentioned here, no website, and called the guy briefly on phone and he didn’t seem to be too experienced with working on exteriors of buildings although he said he did do roofs as well.. -Abatek -GAC Environmental (read something not so good on net-left job unfinished) -J&J Asbestos -Joseph Mafucci (can’t find website of further info on this) -Asbestways –Mentioned here, but frankly there are several bad reports about them stemming from cutting corners, not paying their bills, and their workers stealing property—not good— -Adalex—very shoddy website–looks like it was put up for free–those kinds of sloppy things make me worry that they aren’t professionals at all -Prestige–a rather faceless and generic website with no address info, which I don’t like–no names or contact info–just 1800#
fleabag | 13 years and 5 months ago
Leinster just completed a job for me, highly recommended. They were quick, responsive, and did a fantastic job in just a few short hours on over 700 square feet.
Augustiner | 13 years and 5 months ago
Abatek did a good job for me, very recommendable
greenmountain | 13 years and 5 months ago
It is a lot of work to volunteer for a coop, often good ideas are shot down or ignored. Thank you on behalf of shareholders everywhere. Coops are conservative corporations, not green conscious people. They keep costs as low as possible. It does not always seem that way, to shareholders writing bigger and bigger maintenance checks, but I always hear financial decisions protect long-time shareholders living on fixed incomes, not the whims of idealistic young ones. Some of my neighbors want a deck on top of our coop. I haven’t heard much about solar panels, a green roof or windmills. We just paid for a traditional roof, not green and with no plans for a deck. Our basement has new washing machines, storage for bikes (mostly with flat tires) and furniture we don’t like enough to keep upstairs. We don’t have geothermal wells. So, where should your coop look for an environmentally-safe, insured and legally operating contractor, who keeps the price low? I considered advertising my service in Habitat Magazine, and exhibited at the annual conference of the NY Council of Cooperatives and Condominiums, which publishes Habitat, so I was listed in one issue. I did not get a single job. It cost the equivalent of more than 5 years in the BN directory. I won’t be in that resource again, but I understand it is one resource coop managers use. I think you should call the person who answered you before me. Don’t worry that s/he writes in all caps. Maybe Brownstoner is becoming a resource for coop board members for service providers. I am glad you asked your question here, and if you find a fully inclusive resource, please let us know.